Ninety-eight children of B.C.’s missing and murdered women are eligible to share $4.9 million from the Province, the Government of Canada and the City of Vancouver, pursuant to a key recommendation of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry (MWCI).

The $50,000-per-child compensation offer is intended to provide the children of the women identified in the MWCI report with an opportunity to enhance their education, housing or other circumstances as they progress with their lives. Today’s announcement follows consultation among the funding partners, legal counsel for claimants and representatives for some of the 98 children.

In offering the compensation, the three funding partners are hopeful they will reach a settlement with the 13 litigants involved in an ongoing civil action related to the loss of their mothers.

In Forsaken: The Report of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry, Commissioner Wally Oppal wrote, “Given the compelling evidence that I heard concerning the intergenerational impact of these crimes and the need to break the hold of violence on families, I recommend that the Provincial Government establish a compensation fund for the children of the victims.”

The compensation fund is one more part of government’s response to the MWCI recommendations, which also includes policing reforms like the recent introduction of legislation to better support police in locating vulnerable and at-risk missing persons.